When the ancient Polynesians invented surfing, they often used a paddle to help them navigate. Fast-forward a few millennia, and Stand-Up Paddleboarding, or SUP, finds itself trendy again. Part of its increasing popularity is that standing upright allows surfers to spot waves more easily and thus catch more of them, multiplying the fun factor. Paddling back to the wave becomes less of a strain as well. The ability to cruise along on flat inland water, surveying the sights, is another advantage. Finally, its a good core workout. If youre sold on the idea, schedule an intro SUP lesson, free with board and paddle rental, and you may find yourself riding the waves like a Polynesian king.More

Many of us remember coming home from our elementary schools with freshly glazed pinchpots, cups, or whatever else our young imaginations could conjure up. Saturday mornings at the Randall Museum can bring that memory back, or create a new one for the youngsters. Ceramics make great gifts — especially on Mothers' and Fathers' Day. Hop on board for the Randall's once-weekly class, and for $6 and two weeks to have your work fired and glazed, you'll have all the materials you need.More

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In 2013, when Catharine Clark moved her eponymous gallery from 49 Geary to the Potrero Hill area, she gave herself more room to work with, including a dedicated media space that has shown indelible work by such artists as Shalo P ("The Bedroom Suite"), Nina Katchadourian ("In a Room Full of Strangers"), and Andy Diaz Hope and Jon Bernson ("Beautification Machines").

There's no secret to helping you focus better — unless you count Adderall — but studies have shown that listening to music before or while performing a task can improve attention, memory, and even your ability to perform mental math.

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Weekend Party Preview
The Top Five Parties in S.F. This Weekend: Carl Craig & Octave One, Old-School Electro, and More

Tyree Cooper plays the Episcopal Church of St. John the Evangelist this Sunday.

It's times like these when you wonder why San Francisco doesn't have a major electronic dance music festival of its own. Yes, you guessed it, Decibel Festival has officially started to take over Seattle. Artists from all over the world are currently in planes headed for the West Coast. Of course, the residual benefit of this is an intense week of bookings, with an unusually large number of major headliners passing through. In simple language, it's good news. San Francisco's going to party hard, and sleep will probably take a backseat to the more pressing matter of enjoying the surge while it lasts. Read on -- your weekend awaits.

These days, to describe something as "electro" almost requires a disclaimer. Certain groups in the late-'00s co-opted the term to use it as a catch-all name for the harsh sound of Ed Banger-derived dance music. In actuality, the term has much deeper roots, which go back to the early years of electronic dance music in places like New York, Detroit, and (most importantly) Miami. It's a tough and funky sound that relies on 808 sub-bass and almost liquid hi-hats. Not a style that's played out too often anymore, Haçeteria & O.K. Hole have gotten together to change that. The Electro Basement is a new collaborative affair that strives to show off the depth of this misunderstood genre. To kick thngs off, it's scheduled live performances by Miami's Gosub (check out "Sordon Escape" and "Miami to Brooklyn") and the Bay Area's own Mega_Lo (check out "Disco Extacy,""Going Mobile," and his top five local electro records in this week's Signal to Noise).

House music is a spiritual thing, and a new party is out to make sure everyone knows it. Revival 001 is a new early evening event at The Episcopal Church of St. John the Evangelist put together by the same people behind such popular parties as Body//Current and Jock Jams. For its initial outing, organizers put together a bill that features a rare appearance by original Chicago house pioneer Tyree Cooper. Getting his start in the mid-'80s, Cooper is behind an entire discography of classics that include monsters like "Acid Crash,""Turn Up the Bass," and "Hardcore Hip-House." As that last one indicates, his biggest role in the early years was as one of the city's biggest hip-house artists. Now living in Berlin, he's still a prolific producer -- check out "Nuthin Wrong" for an idea of where he's at today. Local support comes from Vin Sol & 5kinAndBone5, Dj Dedan, and Castlehands. As if that wasn't enough, Donovan's Lights Out Light Show will illuminate the interior with its outstanding barrage of psychedelia.

Seminal New York techno party The Bunker makes its third appearance in San Francisco with yet another quality evening of entertainment. This time organizers are bringing out Belgian techno heavyweight Peter Van Hoesen. Long a leading figure in the Brussels electronic dance scene, he's since relocated to Berlin, where he's become associated with the city's vanguard. Releasing tracks on labels like Ostgut Ton (check out "Axis Mundi") Foton, and Time to Express (his own label), he's garnered a reputation as a killer programmer of hard and dubbed-out sounds, like on this muscular four-hour recording of a late-morning set he played at Berghain. He'll be joined on Monarch's unique Void soundsystem by Bunker resident Derek Plaslaiko (check out his Resident Advisor podcast).

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Sub Pop recording artists 'clipping.' brought their brand of noise-driven experimental hip hop to the closing night of 2016's San Francisco Electronic Music Fest this past Sunday. The packed Brava Theater hosted an initially seated crowd that ended the night jumping and dancing against the front of the stage. The trio performed a set focused on their recently released Sci-Fi Horror concept album, 'Splendor & Misery', then delved into their dancier and more aggressive back catalogue, and recent single 'Wriggle'.
Opening performances included local experimental electronic duo 'Tujurikkuja' and computer music artist 'Madalyn Merkey.'"